Lasting over 30 years, the Cold War caused extreme turmoil between Western and Soviet leaders – however as the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, hopes of the war ending increased.

In light of this, a summit involving the two opposing forces was proposed and, eventually, held in Malta 36 years ago today.

There was a lot of debate on where such an important meeting would take place.

Malta was eventually chosen as the destination of choice thanks to its geographical symbolism, being strategically located at the geographic centre of the Mediterranean, where North meets South and East meets West.

In lieu of the Cold War, Malta had also declared itself neutral, making it the perfect location for such a meeting.

To commemorate this anniversary, Facebook page Audio Visual Memories released some archival footage showing former United States President George Bush and former Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev emerging from their private jets ahead of their meeting.

The footage also shows the two leaders shaking hands and having a seemingly friendly conversation before boarding the ship ‘Maksim Gorkiy’. This gave the meeting further neutrality.

During this very summit, Bush and Gorbachev went on to declare the end of the Cold War.

“I assured the President of the United States that I will never start a hot war against the USA,” Gorbachev announced at a news panel held after the meeting.

“We can realise a lasting peace and transform the East-West relationship to one of enduring co-operation. That is the future that Chairman Gorbachev and I began right here in Malta,” Bush added.

What a historic day!